This sounds like a mission made for double blowhole seven...
A whale has been discovered in the Arctic with a camera harness attached around its head.
And it is thought to be a highly trained Russian spy working for president Vladimir Putin.
The white beluga was found fitted with the strap by fishermen off Ingoya, an island 258 miles from Murmansk, where Russia’s northern fleet is based.
“Equipment St Petersburg” was written on its label, the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries said.
Spokesman Joergen Ree Wiig said, “people in Norway’s military have shown great interest” in the discovery.
Russia has a history of using sea mammals for intelligence purposes.
Russian tourist arrested after trying to smuggle drugged orangutan through airport
During the Cold War, the Soviets trained dolphins to detect weapons using their excellent eyesight, stealth and ability to remember.
It is believed the whale may have escaped from a Russian facility, which trained it to approach foreign ships while carrying a surveillance camera. Martin Biuw, of Norway’s Institute of Marine Research, said: “If this whale comes from Russia, and there is great reason to believe it, then it is not scientists but the navy that has done this.”
Calls for probe into Scots-based infowars after they apologise to Jeremy Corbyn
The tame whale repeatedly approached Norwegian fishing boats last week. A fisherman told reporters he jumped in to the freezing Arctic waters to free it from the strap. He said: “When I was in the water, I managed to reach the front buckle and open it.”
Marine biology professor Audun Rikardsen, of the Arctic University of Norway, said there could be a more innocent explanation.
He said: “We know that in Russia they have had domestic whales in captivity and that some have
apparently been released. They often seek out boats.”
Russians dismissed the “spy whale” theory. Retired Col Viktor Baranets said: “The Norwegians would, perhaps, want to see an officer’s identity card attached to the whale.”
